Lancing devices having lancet ejection assembly

Abstract

A lancing device is provided for use with a removable lancet. The lancing device includes a housing and a lancet carrier slidably disposed within the housing and adapted to receive the lancet. A user-actuated ejection slide is mounted to the housing to eject the lancet from the lancet carrier. A locking member is pivotally mounted to the housing. As the ejection slide moves forward, it rotates the locking member to block forward movement of the lancet carrier during ejection. The locking member is configured so that substantially all of the force exerted on it by the lancet carrier is transmitted to the housing via the pivotal mounting.

1. A lancing assembly comprising:
 a removable lancet having a body terminating in a sharp tip and a sleeve disposed about at least a portion of the body for sliding movement between a forward position in which the sharp tip is protectively surrounded by the sleeve and a rearward position in which the sharp tip projects from the sleeve; and 
 a lancing device comprising:
 a housing; 
 a lancet carrier slidably disposed within the housing and adapted to receive the lancet body; 
 a user-actuated ejection slide mounted to the housing and configured to move the sleeve toward the forward position and to eject the lancet from the lancet carrier; and 
 a locking member cooperating with the ejection slide to move into a blocking engagement with the lancet carrier as the ejection slide moves the sleeve to the forward position, the locking member configured so that the blocking engagement both restrains forward movement of the lancet carrier and the release of the lancet body from the lancet carrier. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The lancing assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the locking member contacts the housing on one or more bearing surfaces apart from the ejection slide, the locking member being configured so that substantially all of the force exerted on it by the lancet carrier is transmitted to the housing via the one or more bearing surfaces. 
     
     
       3. The lancing assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the locking member cooperates with the ejection slide to initially move into and then out of the blocking engagement as the ejection slide moves from a rearward at rest position to a full forward position. 
     
     
       4. A lancing device for use with a removable lancet, comprising:
 a housing; 
 a lancet carrier slidably disposed within the housing and adapted to receive the lancet; 
 a locking member pivotally mounted to the housing to move into and out of a blocking engagement with the lancet carrier, wherein the blocking engagement prevents the lancet carrier from moving forward; 
 an ejection slide mounted to the housing and configured to eject the lancet from the lancet carrier as the ejection slide moves from a rearward at-rest position to a full forward position; 
 wherein the ejection slide is positioned relative to the locking member so that a portion of the ejection slide forces the locking member into the blocking engagement as the ejection slide moves forward toward a point that is intermediate the at-rest position and full forward position; and the ejection slide permits the locking member to move out of the blocking engagement as the engagement slide continues to move forward from the intermediate point toward the full forward position. 
 
     
     
       5. The lancing device of  claim 4 , wherein the blocking engagement restrains the release of the lancet from the lancet carrier.